Burning Flesh
by HG131
Summary: Buffy woke to the sound of screaming...


**A/N The characters do not belong to me, but if they did this would be canon. The idea for the tattoo's history is not mine; it's taken from the Expanded Universe novel **_**Go Ask Malice **_**by**__**Robert Joseph Levy, which provides a back-story for Faith. I couldn't have done this without my wonderful beta, ****Tech Duinn.**

Buffy woke to the sound of screaming. Due to her speed, she was already flying down the stairs by the time she was truly awake. She could tell it was Faith, and that worried her. She had only heard Faith actually scream in pain a few times, and none of those injuries had been pretty. The stench she smelled was also not promising. The sickening fragrance of burnt flesh filled the house, choking the Slayer. She saw two women in the kitchen, one of which disappeared as soon as she entered. The other was Faith.

Faith stood there, trembling, the stove on and a knife in her hand. The knife was glowing, heat radiating off the blade. The Dark Slayer was cutting off her tattoo with it, slicing through her upper arm as if it were butter. The knife burned her flesh while cutting through, preventing her arm from bleeding out. Her hair was all over the place, dark circles shadowed her eyes and she was crying - a rare sight. It took a lot to make Faith's cover of "tough chick" fall apart. Buffy grabbed Faith's arm, pulling the knife out of the sickening wound and forcing it to the ground.

"Faith, what the fuck are you doing?" she yelled, not out of anger, but fear. She turned off the stove and grabbed Faith's shoulders to prevent her from picking up the knife.

"Got to remove it. She's right. Got to remove it," Faith rambled, still crying and shaking. In Faith's state, Buffy was easily able to pin her in place, despite her attempts to escape.

"Who's right? Who told you to remove your tattoo?" Now she was pissed. Pissed at the First for impersonating whoever it took to make Faith act like this, to make her fall apart like this. Buffy cared about Faith. She cared about her far more than anyone knew.

"It was Diana. My Watcher. He killed her and I kept his mark. She appeared. How could I keep it after he killed her?" Faith had stopped crying and was looking into Buffy's eyes.

"What does your tattoo have to do with Kakistos?"Buffy asked.

"It's his mark. A dead Slayer was possessing me. Got called and the possession got worse. The stupid bitch made me get this thing. It's his mark and he killed Diana, but I kept it!" More tears, and now the rest of the house was gathering around, watching.

"Go away. _Now_," Buffy snapped at the growing crowd, glaring at all of them. She turned back to Faith and said, "Faith, it wasn't her. It was the First. It's exploiting our pasts, our loved ones and it's succeeding. You're mutilating yourself! It's not like you! You're better than this! Come on, we need you." In a much quieter tone she continued, "I can't do this without you._ I_ need you. I'm scared, and I can't do this without you."

She leaned in and whispered, "I… I love you and I _can't_ do this without you."

She had avoided admitting that for years. At first, it was because of her relationship with Angel coupled with a hefty dose of denial. Then it was because Faith had turned evil and tried to kill her. However, Buffy had been falling for her all over again, something she had only recently confessed to herself. Sure, she was scared. Scared that Faith wouldn't feel the same or that it would end badly - God knew that always seemed to happen to her. However, she wasn't going to let fear control her life. She was in love with Faith and there was nothing that could change that.

"Really?" Faith asked her. She looked extremely… vulnerable. Buffy realized how important her next words were. Faith was already an emotional wreck - claiming that what she had said was a lie would only make Faith's trauma worse, and she couldn't do that to her. So, she decided to be honest.

"Yeah, really. I've felt like this since you showed up. The first time, that is. Then when you came back a couple weeks ago… I've just been too scared and stupid to admit it," she said, pulling Faith into a hug and smiling lightly. After letting go, Faith leaned in and kissed her softly, just barely hard enough to be felt. Buffy experienced a tingle of excitement and returned the kiss. They went upstairs, ignoring the various reactions and monetary exchanges.

Faith's wound was already cauterized, so Buffy gently cleaned it with peroxide and wrapped it as best she could. Hopefully her Slayer healing would deal with it soon. Just when Buffy began to feel edgy because of the silence, Faith spoke.

"Can… can I stay with you? I understand if you don't want me to-"

Buffy's mouth went dry, but she quickly interrupted, "Of course you can," knowing that showing her anxiousness over sharing a bed with a girl for the first time in her life would shatter the calm. As they climbed under the covers, Faith spoke for the last time that night.

"Love you, B," she said quietly.

"I love you too, Faith."


End file.
